Third man sought in Farmington shooting

Thursday

Jan 17, 2013 at 3:15 AMJan 17, 2013 at 5:44 AM

By Samantha Allensallen@fosters.com

FARMINGTON — A Somersworth man who was shot last Friday in an incident on Meetinghouse Hill Road that still carries much mystery was ordered held Wednesday on $100,000 cash bail out of Rochester Circuit Court. Farmington police say a North Berwick, Maine, man will also be charged in this strange case and a third arrest is “imminent.”

Stephen Roy, 24, of 4 Lords Court, Somersworth, was arrested Tuesday night at his home and charged with robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery, both of which have been deemed Class A felonies.

Police Chief Kevin Willey confirmed Roy was one of two men who suffered a gunshot wound last Friday. Willey said Roy was treated at York Hospital in Maine for a gunshot wound to the head before he was released from the hospital in stable condition. Officials at the time said the man was uncooperative and unwilling to provide details on what led to his injury.

Farmington police say Joshua E. Dionne, 27, of 34 Market Street, Apt. B, North Berwick, Maine, will also be charged with robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery for his alleged involvement in the incident. Dionne is currently being held on a parole violation at York County Jail and a warrant is forthcoming from the Farmington Police Department for him to be charged with being a fugitive from justice. Willey said from there, Dionne will be arraigned in Maine and await extradition back to New Hampshire where his charges related to the Farmington crime will go into effect.

According to a Police Department press release, a third suspect in the Friday incident has been identified and an arrest warrant is forthcoming. In Rochester Circuit Court during Roy's arraignment Wednesday morning, Judge Daniel Cappiello identified Roy's “co-conspirator” as Matthew Roaf, with no address provided. Willey said he could not comment on Roaf's alleged involvement and would not reveal details regarding the third suspect in this case at this time.

During Roy's video arraignment broadcast from the Strafford County House of Corrections, Assistant County Attorney Tim Sullivan said Roy has a “lengthy criminal history” where he has violated his parole numerous times in the past and served jail time. If Roy posts his cash bail, a number of other conditions will be imposed on him including that he wear a GPS tracking bracelet through the Community Corrections program, that he have no contact with a number of people including Dionne and Roaf, that he follow a 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew seven days a week and that he not enter the premises of 316 Meetinghouse Hill Road, where the shooting incident occurred.

Roy has also been ordered upon his release to refrain from illicit drug use, possessing weapons, firearms or ammunition, and to avoid excessive alcohol use.

Last Friday, authorities investigated two incidents not known to be related at the time when Roy checked himself into York Hospital with a gunshot wound to the head and around the same time, another man, identified only as being 21 years of age, checked himself into Portsmouth Regional Hospital with a gunshot wound to the chest. That man was later transported to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. Police said Roy would not release any information and the 21-year-old in Portsmouth told investigators he was shot while riding a four-wheeler near power lines in Barrington.

Farmington police said they were not contacted about this case until Saturday, when interviews by other police departments led officials to believe the shooting occurred in Farmington. It is unknown what happened at the 316 Meetinghouse Hill Road property, though Willey said the shooting occurred sometime in the early afternoon. He would not release details, including why authorities are charging Roy and Dionne with robbery, citing an active and ongoing investigation.

In court, Sullivan listed a myriad of Roy's previous crimes including one time in 2009 where he violated the terms of his parole by failing a drug court program and was sentenced to serve a 1½ to 3 year prison sentence at a New Hampshire house of corrections. Other crimes listed included numerous counts of simple assault, fraudulent use of a credit card, possession of controlled drugs, possession of marijuana, stalking, criminal mischief, criminal threatening, resisting arrest, disobeying a police officer and driving under the influence, all recorded from 2007 to 2011.

Sullivan noted Roy had been reviewed by the Community Corrections program this time around and was determined to be of flight risk and a danger to the community.

During a brief recess as officials worked to set up the video arraignment, those seated in the Rochester courtroom heard Roy ask the bailiff at the county jail if he could pass along a message to his mother through the television monitor.

“Will I get in trouble …?” he asked.

A woman seated in the courtroom burst into tears as a woman next to her put her arms around her and said, “He knows we're here.” After an inaudible response from the bailiff, Roy sat quietly with his head in his hands, exhaling loudly.

As Judge Capiello told Roy he would uphold the county attorney's recommendation for $100,000 cash bail, Roy told the judge he believed the charges would be Class B felonies and not Class A. Capiello explained due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, the level of the charges had been elevated.